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TE311
'' |image= |caption=TE311 in BBMF service |designation=Supermarine Spitfire |version=Mk LF XVIE |c/n= |firstflight=8 June 1945 |lastflight= |featuredin=''Battle of Britain.'' |fate= }} =History= TE311 was built at Castle Bromwich just after the war had ended, being taken on charge by the Air Ministry on 8th June 1945, and delivered to No 39 Maintenance Unit (MU) at Colerne, where it was placed in storage. From October 1945 to February 1946, TE311 was flown by the Handling Squadron of the Empire Central Flying School (ECFS) at Hullavington. It was then stored at No 33 MU at Lyneham until May 1951 when it was allocated to No 1689 Ferry Pilot Training (FPT) Flight at Aston Down. On 21st June 1951, TE311 suffered damage in an accident. Repairs were completed by Vickers Armstrong and the aircraft was returned to 1689 FPT Flight on 31st December 1951. It was subsequently allocated to the Ferry Training Unit at RAF Benson until September 1953 before being returned to 33 MU at Lyneham. In January and February 1954, TE311 served briefly with No 2 Civilian Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit at Langham, Norfolk, before being returned to the MU at Lyneham again on 23rd February 1954. Spitfire TE311 On 13th December 1954, TE311 was officially grounded and transferred to non-effective stock,https://www.raf.mod.uk/bbmf/theaircraft/spitfirete311.cfm and issued with Maintenance serial 7241M on 8th August 1955, before the aircraft was allocated to RAF Tangmere three days later and placed on display at the main gate. Here it stood repainted silver,http://www.sonsofdamien.co.uk/TE311.htm on the main gate at RAF Tangmere. Then, in 1968, TE311 was loaned to Spitfire Productions Ltd, who temporarily modified it with a false rear fuselage to resemble a Mk 1 Spitfire and restored it to taxying condition so that it could be used during filming of ground sequences for the epic film ‘Battle of Britain’. It was used at both North Weald and Duxford during 1968 and on 11th August it was given over to an RAF working party, which restored it to its normal configuration and prepared it for display at RAF Benson, where it arrived in September 1968 and was exhibited at the Battle of Britain Display on 20th September. Its stay at Benson was relatively short, as it was selected to replace SM411, which had been donated to the Museum of Aircraft and Astronautics in Krakow, Poland in exchange for DH9a F1010. Accordingly, TE311 was delivered to Abingdon as part of the RAF Exhibition Flight. During its time here it was loaned to SERCO, West Midlands and also a brief spell loaned to the Bayeux Museum in France where it flew in No.66 squadron colours coded MK178/LZ-V. In January 2000 TE311 was delivered to RAF Coningsby for ‘spares recovery’ (along with Spitfire Mk XVI TB382, which was broken up for spares and struck off charge). Chief Technician Paul Blackah MBE decided that the aircraft merited a re-build to flying condition. This was started in October 2001, with a small team of engineers initially working on the aircraft in their own time, until official approval was received from the Ministry of Defence in 2007 to return TE311 to flying condition as part of the Flight. After a painstaking re-build lasting 11 years the aircraft was returned to an immaculate and extremely authentic standard, and it took to the air again, for the first time in 58 years, on 19th October 2012. Great credit is due to the Memorial Flight engineers, especially Paul Blackah – the team leader and the driving force behind the project – whose skills and perseverance have resulted in another airworthy Spitfire being added to the limited numbers of these iconic aircraft. TE311 was painted to represent Spitfire Mk XVIe TB675 ‘4D-V’ of No 74 Squadron, the personal aircraft of Squadron Leader AJ ‘Tony’ Reeves DFC, the Squadron’s Commanding Officer from the end of December 1944. For the 2017 season, TE311 was painted to represent ‘low-back’, ‘clipped-wing’ Spitfire Mk XVI TD240. This was the personal aircraft of the Commanding Officer of No 131 ((Polish) Wing, Group Captain Aleksander Gabszewicz VM KW DSO DFC, from April 1945 until he left the Wing in mid-June 1945.https://www.facebook.com/BBMF.Official/posts/1132621606792851 =Notes= =Sources= Category:Supermarine Spitfire